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Sunday, January 29, 2006

We've been getting a lot of snow lately. It's actually snowing out there right now. I think the snow is very pretty, I just don't like living in it. I don't like having to brush it all off the car, don't like driving in it & I don't like having to put on tons of clothes every time I go outside. Well, not tons of clothes, but a coat & socks and shoes. I am totally a slip on shoes kind of girl, but that just does not cut it in this weather.

We got some Krispy Kreme donuts from Albertsons last night. Dylan mentioned in the car ride home that I would eat the sprinkle one. I realized that I am a grown woman, 26 years old, and I still love the sprinkle donuts! They are my favorite. What's up with that!? Will this ever change? Probably when my kids are old enough to get to them before I do. They are just so fun & cute, I can help but love them.

Dylan took me out on a date on Friday night. We ate at Bajio (yumma) and then went to see Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire at the cheap theater. It was really fun to get out on our own, talk, laugh & be in love. It's hard to find time these days to go out so we have to jump on any chance we get. It's important.

I got a new filter for my vacuum in the mail the other day. Right on! It's crazy the things that make you happy as you get older. This one is making me really happy. Crazy, I know.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

A few things I've been thinking about today... I feel like a dirty person when my house is a mess. This has been my state of mind for the past couple days too, as my house has been one big mess. Why does living life create such a mess?

Been using my ipod while doing chores. Music sounds so dang good when it's right up in your ear!!! Motivates me to get more of that necessary cleaning done. Right now I'm listening to Of Montreal, Rouge Wave & Ryan Adams. Always love listening to Ryan Adams. Dylan calls him my boyfriend. Not a super attractive person, but there is something about a person that creates such beautiful art that I find very attractive, & dare I even say sexy. This is a huge part of my attraction to Dylan, of course. His love of art, and his incredible artistic ability & creative mind. Love my guy.

I've been nagging myself lately. Telling myself I need to take more pictures. Have not been in that mode lately. Need to get back there. Need some inspiration. Telling myself I need to drink more water & eat more salad. Telling myself I need to get more done in the day. Telling myself I need to plan more fun stuff to do with Sadie. Thought about some play dough, but changed my mind real quick. Maybe when she's a little bit older. Telling myself I need to be easier on myself & let things go. Trying to just choose to be really happy every day. Telling myself that Spring will come some day.

Also thinking about how much I've loved this blog. How much more it makes me think about myself. So happy to have a means of "saving" these memories. I know that I will love looking back & reading this stuff a few years from now. I'll be able to see how I've grown & how I've just stayed the same as well. Love this outlet.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

I blew some bubbles into the tub tonight while Sadie was taking a bath. She loved it. Lots of squealing going on. I don't know where the idea came from, but it was fun to add some excitement to the daily routine.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

- Craisins on my salad. yum.- the TV show LOST. Dylan & I are addicted.- that I've hit the 15 lbs. mark in my weight loss since I've joined the gym.- My sisters' blogs. So glad Amber just started one. Love feeling more connected with them.- Sadie's book club books that came in the mail yesterday.

Such a happy girl these days. She wakes up full of energy. Running through the house, dancing and yelling. Loves bananas, eats one almost every day. Loves her baths, never wants to get out, would probably stay in forever if I didn't pull her out. She likes to watch the Wiggles & Little Einsteins on tv. Loves doing whatever Dad is doing. I think this is adorable, but can be pretty annoying sometimes for Dylan especially when he's doing homework. She loves real physical play like airplane & wrestling. She is saying so many words & gets real frustrated when we can't understand what she is trying to communicate. Still a very dramatic girl. Lays her head on my shoulder & plays with my hair when she is tired or sad. It makes her happy to be my "helper". She turns the lights on & off and pushes buttons on the microwave. I do lose my patience with her every once in a while, but she's just so dang cute & happy & full of energy. I can't believe this girl was just a little baby growing inside of me not too long ago. She's great. Love being her mom.

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Had a really fun day with Amanda today. We went down to Idaho Falls and did some shopping. Stopped at Famous Footwear, Target, Old Navy & Claire's. It was a good time. Our kids were pretty good for us & it was great to get out of the house, talk & just have a good time. I'm so glad Amanda and I have become such good friends. She's a super nice person & way funny too. It's great to have a friend that is going through so many of the same things that I am right now.

Amanda and I have been talking about buying some earrings lately. This in an attempt to not look so plain all the time. So at Claire's we totally took advantage of a buy one pair get the second pair 50% off earring sale. And we got some dangly ones!!! Yay us! We will both be sporting these at church tomorrow.

I'm happy to be feeling a lot better - over my cold/flu and I've finally got my energy back. I'm really excited to have a nice day tomorrow, with time to spend with Dylan.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

So I stole this idea from my sister Heather. I think it's totally cool. A great way to record some lesser knowns about myself.

1- The only type of milk I will drink is skim. Nothing else, even on cereal.2- I talk in my sleep. Didn't know this until I got married. But, now that Dylan & I are parents, we're super tired all the time. My talking doesn't wake him up at night anymore, so I don't get to hear all the funny stuff I say.3- I love food. (most people know this, I think) I watch the food network A LOT! 4- Mopping is my least favorite chore. Don't know why, cause I really love clean floors.5- I want to become a really good photographer. I plan on taking classes once I have the time & money to.

On another note, Sadie said "sweatshirt" today and it sounded really funny.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Been kinda out of it. We've all been sick. Dylan was in a car accident Friday night. He was rear ended at a stoplight. not much damage to the car. He's been a little sore since & now I think I've passed my cold on to him. I'm feeling a little better each day. Going to the dentist today. Should be fun.

Sadie is feeling better. She's understanding so much more. We're working on picking up toys right now. She loves to put her blocks back in the container. She loves throwing trash in the garbage can for us. Sometimes she throws things away that aren't trash, though. She also likes to pull junk out of the garbage can - not good. She calls the garbage "bishge". She has started to take her clothes off all the time, and she doesn't want us to put them back on her. Most the time I'm okay with this if she's just taking off her shirt. But once she takes her pants off, she wants her diaper off as well. It's not fun dealing with her on this, because when she knows she wants something she gets soooooo dramatic. Silly girl. Mom - does this undressing thing remind you of anybody?

Friday, January 13, 2006

Made some cookies for Dylan the other night. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies. His favorite. I thought we could do something nice for him. Something to make him smile. So he came home to a big batch of his favorite cookies. And I mean big! Holey moley that recipe makes a ton of dough.

Sadie was so ready to help. I pulled up a chair to the counter & she was happy as can be. Actually didn't get too in the way, which is very surprising. In the photo above she is licking a spatula that has butter creamed up w/ white & brown sugar on it. Doesn't that sound nasty? She sure was going to town on it. Probably not the best thing to let her have just before bedtime, but it made her happy. You can't see in the photo, but she is wearing "baking themed" pj's. They have a mixer, flour, sugar, etc. on them. Oh, so adorable, wearing her baking pj's & baking cookies at the same time. ha ha.

I've been losing my patience a lot with Sadie lately. And I've been thinking about my Mom & wondering how in the world she did this 8 times. I'm getting real tired of Sadie constantly getting into everything, looking at me when I tell her "no" and doing it anyway. Over & over & over & over. Missing the warm weather & that we can't just go outside when she starts to get in this mode. Thankful to be babysitting because it gives Sadie some kids to play with - a distraction, I guess.

I have 3 babysitting jobs today. Rebecca, who I babysit every Mon, Wed, Fri. Andrew who I babysit every Fri. (These are both just for this semester) They will both come over around 11:30 & leave at 3:00. And them Amanda's two girls this evening so they can go to the temple. I'm not feeling well, got no sleep last night. But like I said, it's all good. Sadie behaves really well when other kids are over. That makes me happier.

Any suggestions on how to keep a 16 month entertained inside would be greatly appreciated. Just post them in comments. Thanks!

Got a package yesterday from Urban Outfitters. My in-laws gave me some money as a Christmas present to shop for some clothes for myself. How nice is that! These little black shoes totally covered in sequins was one of my purchases. Love them! I was totally walking around the house in my pajamas with these on last night.

Urban Outfitters was running a sale of an additional 25% off clearance items. So I grabbed these for just $7.50. Pretty cool. I also ordered a really cute black cardigan & a blue-green lace skirt. I'm so excited to have a new outfit for church. Something with some cool detail. I really shouldn't be so excited about clothes, I know. It's just really fun to have something nice to wear. Something I couldn't afford otherwise.

Speaking of being spoiled. I took my new iPod shuffle to the gym the other day. So much fun. I love this little thing, which I've nicknamed my fishstick. It's just that size. Thanks to Dylan for giving me such a fun toy for Christmas, and for helping me to feel like a cool mom.

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

My little Sadie girl is starting to copy what we say a lot more. Yesterday I asked her is she wanted a snack. Some pretzels. And she said "pretzels" in her own little way, which sounded something like "pee see". I put some pretzels in a little bowl for her, because she likes to walk around with her snack in a bowl. It makes her feel big and in charge. I handed the bowl to her and she said "too too", which means "thank you". It was so cute I just couldn't stand it.

Some of our other favorites right now are:"woo woo" - love you"bess shoo" - bless you

I also signed up for a book club for this girl. At first I felt it was something we just couldn't afford. But after looking into it I realized that the first books I ordered end up costing about $2.00 per book. Which you really can't beat, and I'm only obligated to buy 4 more books over the next 2 years. I think it's really important that she has a variety of books. My sister Heather has a ton of children's books from her time as an elementary school teacher. I always thought that was so cool that her kids have so many books. One I'm looking for that they didn't have at this book club is "The Very Busy Spider". I remember Lauren being so cute with that book when she was a little girl. I'm sure I can find it used on Amazon for a good price though. Anyway, should be fun. Can't wait to get the books we ordered!

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

- eating eggs & whole wheat toast w/ Sadie this morning.- going to the gym.- that I've said goodbye to 10 lbs. already.- that Sadie no longer drinks from a bottle.- a husband that tells me I'm pretty.- a blanket of white snow outside.- that there's a new episode of Gilmore Girls tonight!

Not loving so much...

- that Sadie has an ear infection, post nasal drip, & a rash that won't go away.- pushing a grocery cart through a snowy parking lot.- not being able to see Dylan as much since he started school again & is working two jobs.

Monday, January 09, 2006

One of my resolutions this year is to write more. So I am starting this blog to record what is going on in my life, in my head, in my little world. I want to remember everyday moments, as well as trials & triumphs. Hoping that my family & friends out there will enjoy one more window into my world & will also be my support in keeping this up.

A little bit of explanation on the name of my blog: Sparkle Power. Dylan told me I needed to have "sparkle" in the title somewhere.

Many of you know that I am a jeans & t-shirt girl all the way. This wardrobe is evidence of the completely practical person that is me. Solid colored t-shirts that I buy on sale at Target for $6.99 can be worn with all my jeans. They are comfortable, and when they become stained I can say goodbye to them without much care because they only cost me $6.99 to begin with.

BUT, My mom has often told me that when I was a little girl I was always interested in the shiny, gold clothes and shoes when we were in a clothing store. From what I understand this was pretty embarrassing to my family. AND, now, as an adult, there is this side on me that really, really wants a sequins purse. I do however struggle with how this flashy sequins purse would look with my t-shirt & jeans. So there is this side of me. This "sparkley" side. I'm trying not to hide it anymore, or be ashamed of it. It's been with me from the beginning with my gold fascination & now with my love of all things sequins.

So, welcome to Sparkle Power, my blog. My place to be me. And as cheesy as it sounds, my place to sparkle.

I believe in being positive. I believe in love & family. I believe in handmade. I believe in doing good to others. I believe that we are all connected. I believe that every little bit adds up to make a big difference. My name is Candace. I'm married to the love of my life & am the mother to two super cool girls & one sweet baby boy. I love sewing, cooking, thrifting & photography.